Here's a little something that randomly popped into my head and is trying to run away. This is only part one, so I promise there will be more, I'm just still trying to figure out how I want it to go. Enjoy!


It started with Levy; with twins no less. Then it was Juvia, followed quickly by Lucy and Evergreen. She tried not to feel resentful, tried not to envy them their obvious love and affection from their partners; and instead focus on loving each and every one of them. She played the perfect "auntie", complete with well-placed threats to the fathers-to-be and tending to the needs of the expectant mothers. She watched with wonder and a tinge of sadness as their bellies grew over time, each mother handling the aches and pains and sometimes downright weirdness that accompanied the hormonal changes happening within their own bodies with varying effects and methods. She kept her ugly envy to herself, refused to acknowledge its presence outside the confines of her own room, and only displayed the deep-rooted happiness she also felt for each of the expanding families in Fairy Tail.

Despite her small stature and the fact that she was carrying twins fathered by a rather large Iron Dragon Slayer, Levy somehow maintained her strength and energy throughout most of her pregnancy. The toll never really came until her third trimester, at which time she was the most uncomfortable she could ever remember being. The Solid Script Mage could not use her magic, Doctor's orders, and could only hobble around on her swollen ankles inside the Guild Hall when she did get out. Her back and hips ached almost constantly, her stomach and bladder felt like they were the size of acorns – leading to frequent trips to the bathroom and snacking at all times of the day and night – and she struggled to find anything that would fit over her massive belly. But despite all that, the tiny mage liked to joke that her belly made a good bookrest, and she finally had all the time she wanted to read whatever she wanted, while Gajeel continued taking on missions to help pay the bills.

For his part, the Iron Dragon Slayer had never appeared happier, had never appeared more at peace than he did at his pregnant wife's side. The wedding had happened rather quickly after the couple found out they were pregnant, but the guild managed to throw the ceremony together before Levy started to show. As Levy's pregnancy progressed, the already protective Iron Dragon Slayer became even more so. He barely tolerated Jet and Droy, hardly let Levy walk anywhere and instead insisted on carrying her, and downright refused to let her be alone when he was out on a mission. Because of this, Levy found herself spending more nights at Fairy Hills or having sleepovers at her own place with the other female mages rather than defy her overprotective husband's wishes.

Before Levy had even given birth, Juvia was the next to announce her pregnancy. Unlike Levy and Gajeel, Gray and Juvia had gotten married during the year Fairy Tail was disbanded. They kept this a secret for a long time, not wanting to hurt their friends' feelings that they had ran off and gotten married with none of them around. True, it had happened mostly on a whim, but it didn't mean their relationship was any less sturdy, any less committed than anyone would expect from them - Juvia was nothing if not loyal. The same could be said for Gray. Despite his long withstanding refusal of her advances, everyone did notice that he never once saw another girl after Juvia came to the guild. In fact, his teammates were the ones to notice that he isolated himself from them nearly as soon as they met.

At first, Juvia had been almost reluctant to announce their pregnancy, not wanting to "steal Levy's thunder", but it didn't matter. Levy had been so excited for them; she'd jumped up and down and thrown herself into labor four weeks early. The twins were born a nerve-wracking 32 hours later, leaving Juvia pale-faced and nervous, pacing the waiting room saying that her baby was never coming out, she was never going through the torture that Levy was surely enduring based on her screams, despite Porlyusica and Wendy caring for her.

Gray handled his pending fatherhood like he handled everything else - with a cool, calm facade. He easily calmed his wife down during Levy's nerve-wracking delivery (despite his concerned glances at the pale and shaken Gajeel when the man did manage to pop out of the delivery room from time to time), and took care of her every need and desire, not that she had many. Juvia was never one to want much, and with her water body, the pregnancy took very little out of her; so she demanded little of her husband, something that seemed to almost bother him as he felt like he didn't have enough to do. He was more attentive to Juvia than anyone had ever seen him, and even managed to fight with Natsu less and less as his attention was called more to his growing family.

Natsu took to being an "uncle" like he took to breathing fire. The Fire Dragon Slayer was almost as excited as Gray was, so it was no surprise when Lucy became pregnant just a few short months after Gray and Juvia's son was born.

If Gajeel had been protective over his pregnant wife and then his twins once they were born, Natsu was a possessive and defensive guardian. Unlike Levy and Juvia, who handled their pregnancies with relative ease, Lucy was downright miserable. She was sick for the first four months, barely able to keep anything down unless it was horrendously spicy, which then gave her horrible heartburn. When the nausea abated, the body aches and pains came with a vengeance. She wanted heat to help with the pains in her joints yet couldn't tolerate the heat unless it was provided by Natsu. At the same time, if she was away from him, she felt terribly cold. She blamed this polarized upset in her thermoregulation on Natsu being a Fire Dragon Slayer.

On top of her poor temperature regulation, Lucy was also tired all the time and couldn't focus. Her writing, which should have been excelling at a time when she couldn't go on jobs, took to the back burner as she spent her spare time laying around and sleeping. When she did get a burst of energy, she would obsessively clean and only occasionally work on her book, often throwing out whatever she had written out of misplaced anger from her wildly fluctuating moods. Little did she know, Natsu often fished the balled-up guts of her work out of the trash (she had a small can right next to her writing desk, and only paper went in there), carefully flattening the crumpled pages between other heavy books and storing them safely for later, after the baby was born. He knew she would regret throwing what progress she had made out, and from what he'd scanned upon finding the first tossed out page that had missed the bin, she was wrongly thinking it wasn't any good.

For his part, Natsu never wanted to leave Lucy's side, and actually didn't need to. Lucy felt better in his presence, his heat soothing to her joints and easing the chills she would get without him. Her fatigue and mood swings were also less extreme around him, in quite the contradiction to their early sometimes volatile relationship. They couldn't explain it, but Natsu was more than happy to stay at his pregnant wife's side (they had tied the knot as soon as possible after their last fight with Acnologia. Everyone knew what had spurred their apparent permanent "friend zone" to grow into the fervent adoration the couple now exuded) rather than leave her alone while he went on jobs. Instead, he recruited Gajeel, Loke (who used his own power rather than Lucy's to come to their world), Happy and Erza and they cleaned up his house, making it safe and sound for their growing family. It didn't take long, and the moment Lucy realized she wouldn't have to pay rent anymore, she burst into happy tears that sent Natsu into a tailspin trying to figure out what he did wrong.

While the others hadn't been able to conceal their excitement the moment they discovered they were expecting, Evergreen and Elfman were quiet about their growing family. Evergreen simply started spending more time at home than at the guild, only her husband and teammates knowing the real reason why. When questioned about his wife, Elfman always evaded the topic and changed the subject, until Evergreen finally waltzed into the guild one day, seven months pregnant and glowing in a way that left the other mothers in the guild hall simmering with envy.

"How can she look so good when she's that pregnant?!" Lucy whined, gently patting her daughter on the back from where she was perched on her shoulder.

Juvia gave Lucy a sympathetic look but looked to the others for some supportive words. Levy, who was helping her son draw while her daughter played with Erza's hair, simply shrugged. "She is a fairy," she answered, as though it explained everything.

Of the four present, none of them noticed the way Erza stilled at Evergreen's entrance, her eyes glassy and distant as she took in the green-eyed fairy in all her pregnant poise. Evergreen was always graceful and elegant, and pregnancy only seemed to enhance those attributes. Even her swollen belly looked perfectly proportioned to her frame and although she would never say so out loud, her demeanor had become much more pleasant (unlike Lucy, who had been prone to violent mood swings, especially in the beginning). Her husband's caring concern and presence at her side was akin to a knife in the heart as Erza suddenly realized she was quickly becoming the last one. The last one to marry, the last one to have a child, the last one to move on with her life after all they had been through, despite the fact that she was older than most of those around her. Of course, the Alzacks, Macao, Wakaba, Reedus, Max, Laxus and Mirajane were her age or older, but the younger bunch, the ones that had sometimes seemed so hopeless in the face of romance had surpassed her. She wasn't even in a committed relationship! As petty as it sounded, she suddenly needed to be alone, lest the lump in her throat strangle her in front of her friends and the tears she had been trying so hard to keep at bay find their way free.

Carefully removing Aurora from her lap, Erza patted the girl's head when she looked up at her in confusion before she slid from her seat. "Excuse me," she managed to spit out just as she all but sprinted for the door.

Confounded, the mothers looked at each other in silence before Lucy finally spoke. "She thinks we don't notice," she breathed, her hand stilling on her daughter's back as she looked guiltily at the table.

"She's trying to be supportive by not saying anything," Juvia replied, her words quickly followed by a heavy sigh. "Should we go after her?"

Levy remained silent the longest, carefully selecting her words. "I think that might only make her feel worse. We just have to be supportive when we see her."

They grew silent then, each of them dissolved into their own thoughts as they absently entertained their children. "Does anyone know where Jellal is?" Lucy finally asked.

Levy put a finger to her chin, her eyes raised to the ceiling in thought. Jellal had always been nomadic. Calling him hard to track down was an understatement. When he didn't want to be found, there was no finding him, even with the dragon slayers on their side. That said, she knew he came around Fairy Tail more than he used to, his name being cleared certainly helped in that respect. Even so, he had not officially joined the guild (despite being all but begged to in the beginning), had not yet truly given up the mantle he'd picked up when creating Crime Sorciere. As much as she knew Erza liked to deny it, or thought she could hide it, she knew the Requip Mage's heart only beat for him, and there would be none other who could bring her more joy, but also bring just as much anguish. In truth, the entire guild knew. "We could ask the guys to look for him."

Juvia's brow furrowed. "You don't think that might upset her?"

Lucy smiled mischievously. "You think she would be anything but happy to see him? How long has it been, anyway?"

Levy chuckled ruefully. "Oh, I don't know that we always know when he comes around. He might just stop by sometimes to see Erza, not the rest of us." When the others stared at her with open mouths, she shrugged. "What?! The guy's not exactly social."

Despite their mutual ages and experiences (they were all mothers, for Mavis' sake), Lucy couldn't help but blush. "You don't mean he just stops by for a booty call, do you?!" she whisper-shouted, looking over her shoulders to make sure no one else heard them.

With a shrug, Levy chuckled once more. "I mean, it's totally possible, isn't it?"

Juvia remained silent, her eyes more on Lucy than anything. "You know her better than we do."

Still appearing shocked by their insinuation, Lucy couldn't help but flounder for a response. "That doesn't mean we talk about our sex lives!" She whisper-shouted, as though afraid someone else might overhear them. After a moment's pause, she continued. "Besides, she often avoids talking about him. I think she keeps whatever goes on between them close to her chest. I've tried getting information out of her, and she somehow always manages to change the subject. As far as I know, they've never even kissed."

Levy waved a hand in Lucy's direction. "I find that impossible to believe."

"What?!" Lucy argued. "It was at the Grand Magic Games. Apparently, they came close, but he freaked out at the last minute, spouting off some lie about a fiancée to try to make her feel better. He only made her feel worse, but the thought was there." She sighed. "It took her a long time to even tell me about that, and I think it was only because we were both drunk."

"Lucy, the games were years ago now. You don't honestly think nothing has happened between them since then?!" Juvia exclaimed.

"Are we talking about the Grand Magic Games?" Natsu suddenly interrupted, sauntering up to the group with his signature grin. He sweetly rubbed his daughter's head without waking her.

Lucy, upon hearing her husband's voice, rolled her eyes but smiled, nonetheless. He could be a destructive force of nature, and yet be so gentle with his daughter. It was always heartwarming to see and witness. "Yes, but it's not what you think," she quickly corrected. "We aren't talking about how amazing you were in defeating an entire guild all by yourself and damn near melting the coliseum."

Deflated, Natsu huffed, his hands moving to fists at his hips. "Why the hell not? It was pretty awesome!"

"Awesome?!" Lucy interjected. "You damn near burned all my clothes off!"

Natsu's eyebrows waggled suggestively as he chuckled. "I know." Despite their married status, Lucy couldn't help but blush and instinctively lowered her head, her now short blonde hair successfully hiding her darkened cheeks, some.

Trying to distract the Fire Dragon Slayer, Gray joined the group, resting his arm atop Natsu's shoulder like they always had. The two may have matured a lot over the years, but their brotherly friendship and love was stronger than ever. "What's going on, guys?"

"We're trying to sort out if anyone knows where Jellal is," Juvia answered, her brows furrowed as though she didn't completely understand. Her attention was only momentarily derailed as she smiled up at her husband, who casually plucked their son from her arms.

"Why do you want to know where Tattoo Face is?" Natsu asked, looking at each of them in turn.

"Tattoo Face? What's going on with Tattoo Face?" Gajeel questioned, the last to join their ever-growing party around the table.

"It has to do with Erza, and that's all we're saying," Lucy replied before leveling each of the girls with a glare to ensure their silence.

Scratching the side of his nose, Gajeel looked to the side. "I haven't seen him per se, but I did hear he was heading towards town yesterday."

"Where'd you hear that?" Levy immediately questioned.

Shrugging, Gajeel smiled. "I'm not revealing my sources." His smile fell at Levy's dangerous glare and he automatically raised his hands defensively in front of him. "All right, all right! I heard Laxus talking about it."

"Laxus?" the three women asked in unison. "What does Laxus have to do with anything?"

"Look, I don't know why he was talking about it or why it even matters, I'm just telling you what I heard."

Gray, who had been quietly surveying the table before him, realized just what was missing. "You said it has something to do with Erza? Where is she, anyway? I thought she was with you guys."

Natsu jolted at Gray's words, as though shocked and ashamed that he hadn't noticed sooner. When the girls remained silent, his heart fell. Erza was like his big sister, and he hated to see her in any sort of pain. "Okay, spill. What's going on?"

At the seriousness in Natsu's tone, who still was nearly just as wild as he was before having a family, the girls at the table relented, explaining what they thought was eating at the Requip Mage in halting sentences. It was Gray who had the soundest advice. "Hey, have you guys asked Mira about any of this? If anyone would know anything, she would."


Erza exited the Guild Hall and fell back against the door with a thud. Her chest rose and fell rapidly with heavy breaths, but not because of her short run – because of her tumultuous emotions. She wanted to cry; the tears were there, burning her eyes and tightening her throat, and yet she refused. She didn't feel she had a valid reason to cry. If anything, she was being horrible – selfish, jealous, and caddy. She should be happy, elated for her friends and their burgeoning success in life, not envious of their relationships and expanding families. Jealousy was an ugly emotion; she had seen it more than once on Lisanna's face after her return from Edolas. She didn't want to be like that, but she couldn't stop it any more than she could keep herself from loving Jellal, despite all his attempts to create distance, to make her hate him.

Pushing herself away from the door with a quiet grunt, Erza smoothed out her clothes and huffed. If she couldn't have Jellal, it was time she set about looking for someone else, and as much as that idea crippled her, made her feel dirty and cheap, there was some excitement behind it. Although the excitement would be greater if she wasn't about to go out alone, she was not about to ask anyone to come with her. No, it was better to take this job on by herself.


It took her over an hour to get completely ready after arriving back at her dorm, showering and changing. She requipped through multiple outfits of varying styles before setting on something she felt Lucy would approve of. The top was slightly cropped and silver, with a low-cut neck that exposed her cleavage, without overdoing it. She also went with a simpler skirt – short and black with a small slit up the left leg. She chose a lacy black bra and matching panties to complete her ensemble, not that she planned on anyone seeing them, but it helped her feel sexier. Ever the fan of her Heart Kreutz, she wore a velvet choker around her neck with their emblem dangling slightly down from it and had her hair mostly pulled up high onto the back of her head. Her long ponytail flowed easily with her movements, while strands flanked her face. She took it easy on the makeup but did outline her eyes with dark eyeliner before adding a smokey effect with varying shades of eyeshadow. She left her lips natural, except for a touch of lip gloss. Black boots that came up to her knees finished the ensemble.

Even once she was ready, Erza paused as she headed for the door. She didn't go out drinking, especially not alone. When she needed to cut loose, she went to the guild and surrounded herself with her friends in order to chase her cares and concerns away. Clenching her teeth, her hands curled into tight fists and not for the first time she realized how naked she felt without her armor. The temptation was there, her magic placing said item easily within her reach, but she shook her head. "I don't need it," she ground out to the empty room. Instead, she turned on her heel towards the kitchen and poured herself a shot of whiskey in order to bolster her courage. She slammed the shot glass down harder than she meant to, her whole-body shuddering as the strong liquid burned all the way down. Before she could talk herself out of it, she left the apartment, headed with a purpose towards town.

The walk into town took less than twenty minutes, but it was long enough to make Erza question her sanity, despite the shot having time to start taking effect. Her pace slowed, her earlier frustration abating as she increased her distance from the guild and her teammates. Instead, her mind turned inward, focusing on the source of so much joy and yet so much frustration in her life: Jellal. She loved him more than life itself, and convincing herself she couldn't have him, that it just was not meant to be, felt like killing something inside of her, crushing the tiny seed of hope that had been sprouting within her chest ever since the Eclipse Gate. True, she saw him more frequently now than she perhaps ever had, and when they were together, they were more open and carefree, but that was it. While he did touch her, it was always in a neutral way – a friendly hand on the shoulder or gentle touch to her arm. They'd embraced on more than one occasion, a hug before parting ways that often went on longer than was necessary, but she would take whatever she could get.

The more she thought about him, about her weak attempts to keep him close, to not let him leave her, the more agitated Erza became until she finally came to the bar she was looking for. She'd failed at all those things, and that failure hurt like an axe to the chest. Flinging the door open with more force than was necessary, the word, 'pathetic' rang in her ears as the bar went silent a moment until she stepped inside. "Oh, I-I'm sorry," she apologized with a soft bow of her head. What? So, I'm stuttering now?! Her self-deprecating tone only increased until the other patrons inside turned back to what they were doing, the music resumed, and she closed the door behind her with a quiet sigh.

She had not even made it to the bar before being approached by a man with tousled brown hair and bloodshot eyes. One stern look from her sent him packing, but it set her nerves on edge and by the time she took an open seat at the bar she was already dreading being approached again. She didn't have to wait long, as another man with perfectly coifed green hair leaned heavily on the bar on his elbow, raising his hand as he intended to order her a drink.

"Hey there, Gorgeous." He smiled and the only thing Erza could think was, skeezy. "Can I buy you a drink?"

Despite herself, Erza hesitated. This is what she came out for, right? Then, she realized where his eyes were – and they were not on her face – and she immediately followed her gut and refused. "No."

Clearly not used to being refused, the man frowned, his eyes finally rising to meet hers. "What? No?"

Just like the first, Erza leveled him with a glare Gray and Natsu knew all too well. "That's what I said. No." Pointedly looking around the man to catch the bartender's attention, she ignored the annoyed huff that was quickly followed by a retreat. Good grief, she inwardly groaned, requesting a lite strawberry daquiri.

Nearly half-an-hour passed in relative peace and quiet. The music was loud, but not overwhelming, and despite her solitude at the bar, Erza didn't feel alone. The man behind the bar was nice and polite, checking on her without hovering. Even so, she was steadily talking herself into leaving, berating herself for acting so childish, when a man with orange hair and brown eyes appeared at her side. His cheeks were flushed, the nearly empty bottle of beer in his hand an indication of why, but his smile was sincere, and his eyes were kind. He didn't stand too close to her or lean on the bar as though he couldn't support his own weight, and from what she had seen of his gait, he was still steady on his feet. So, she forced herself to listen, to give him the time of day she normally would have refused to, "just in case" Jellal were to show up. Nine times out of ten he didn't, and she had promised herself she'd move on, right? Wasn't that the whole point of going out?

"Hi," he greeted without the expected slur. He indicated her nearly finished drink with a tilt of his nearly empty beer bottle. "Mind if I buy you a drink?"

She couldn't answer how she normally would. She wouldn't allow it. Flirting didn't come naturally to her, but she decided it was worth trying. "You know, I might be here meeting someone," she taunted, raising an eyebrow as she looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He wasn't hard on the eyes – tall and decently built, his frame was not so dissimilar from Jellal's. While tall, he was not tall enough to tower over her like Laxus and Elfman, but she did still have to look up at him. Still, she tried not to get distracted by the similarities between him and Jellal, to not compare him to Jellal, and instead focus on his square features and decent manners – she had not noticed his eyes wandering once.

At her answer, his face went slack, and he took a conscientious step back. "Oh! Of course," he mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand. "Are you?" he finally asked, his eyes wide and innocent when he looked up at her.

Erza had to bite her tongue to keep herself from scanning the bar. She did not come here to look for him. "Actually, I'm not," she answered with a smile as she slid a barstool over and indicated he could take the one next to her.

Beaming a smile that was more than a little lopsided, the man quickly haled down the bartender before turning back to her with his hand extended. "I'm Wren."

She shook his hand, allowing more than some of her strength to show through her firm grip. Her smile only grew when his eyes grew slightly wider at her demonstration of strength. "Erza."

His eyes darted to her left arm, then back to her eyes. "Oh! Are you that Erza?! Erza Scarlett of Fairy Tail?"

Despite herself, Erza flinched at the mention of her last name. Jellal gave her that last name, and here she was, trying to find someone else to be with… Damn it, stop it already! He doesn't own you just because he chose your last name for you! Although she fought it, her smile fell and her eyes grew sad, Wren easily catching the change in her mood at her side, and carefully sliding her beer over in her direction.

"Hey, I'm sorry. You probably get that all the time." He sighed, but it came out more like a huff. "It must get old."

Without realizing she was doing it; Erza's right arm crossed her chest so she could cover her guild emblem with her hand. She was ashamed to do it, but this wasn't the night she wanted to be recognized. Clearly, she hadn't been thinking about that when choosing her outfit. Either way, Wren was being sweet, and she didn't want to ruin the mood. "No, it's fine." Forcing herself to remove her hand, she sat up straighter, shook her hair back behind her shoulders and took the beer he offered. "Sorry, I just-I just need to cut loose tonight."

To his credit, Wren didn't jump at the opportunity those words presented. Instead, his deep chocolate eyes searched hers, which was difficult in the darkness, before raising his bottle up to clink against hers. "Well, then, to cutting loose!" he cheered, raising his bottle up in a toast only a moment before Erza did. She mimicked him, taking a long draught of her beer before lowering it with a smile.

"Thank you." She bit her lower lip in thought a moment before calling for a shot, her eyebrow raised at Wren as though in challenge, which he readily accepted.

When their shots arrived, Wren slid hers over before raising his own, but he didn't toast her just yet. "You know, if there's something you need to talk about, to get off your chest, I'm more than happy to listen," he offered, just before tapping his glass on the table and raising it up so Erza could do the same.

Erza almost couldn't believe her luck. Was it really true: third time's the charm? How else was it that she happened to find someone at the bar that was so nice? It almost didn't seem possible. Even so, she smiled at his offer before following his lead and downing the shot at the same time as him. She shuddered when she set the shot glass back down, but still smiled. "Thanks, but I'm fine just drinking for now."

With a nod and a shrug, Wren took his fresh beer in hand and spun on his stool so he could look out at the dance floor. "Do you dance?"

Her brow furrowed, Erza followed his gaze before looking back at him. If she were out with the girls, she would absolutely dance, but she was by herself. It was much easier to have more confidence in a crowd, despite her usual bravado. She simply felt too fragile at the moment. "Maybe with some more alcohol," she admitted.

And so it was that they did two more shots, Erza downing her beer before allowing Wren to all but drag her out onto the dance floor. She tried to focus on the feeling of his hand on her, his grip firm but gentle around her wrist as he tugged her after him. When he found a suitable spot, he released her and turned, finding the rhythm easily as Erza laughed with darkening cheeks. At his gentle prodding, she finally decided to let go herself, and allowed the music to flow through her with practiced ease. Wren was all too eager to follow suit, his hands lingering on her body as he held her hips in his hands to help guide her movements. The first time he touched her, Erza jumped, and she hated herself for it. He wasn't Jellal, and that knowledge made her feel dirty; like she was somehow being unfaithful just by dancing with him. Thankfully, Wren was observant and removed his hands the moment she jumped, quickly apologizing over the loud music by getting close to her ear. Annoyed with herself and determined to enjoy the night, Erza grabbed him by the arms and put his hands back where they had been on her hips.

They danced like this for what felt like hours, before thirst drove them from the dance floor and back to the bar. Conversation was flowing easily between them at this point, Erza's cheeks flushed prettily both from the alcohol and the exertion, while Wren wiped sweat off his brow. They ordered another round of shots and beers, chatted about some of the missions Erza had been on lately and what Wren did, which was make magical items such as potions and amulets. In fact, he was looking into joining a guild, but had his sights set on Blue Pegasus.

As soon as he mentioned those two words, Erza's face scrunched and she shoved him away from her with a little more force than she meant to use. "What?! You want to go to those guys? But they're so… creepy."

Wren faked a pout. "Oh, come on. They're not all that bad." When Erza shrugged and rolled her eyes, before taking a swig of beer, he took a bold step forward. "Although I must admit that I'm coming to like the idea of going to Fairy Tail more and more," he murmured, suddenly mere inches away from her.

As she lowered her beer bottle, Erza felt herself freeze like a mouse caught by a prowling cat. She was having fun and felt delightfully tipsy – maybe even more so – but there was no denying the way her heart started pounding at his close proximity, especially when his hand slid along the counter so that the tips of his fingers could brush against hers and his other hand gently closed around her upper arm. She was suddenly reminded of her "near-kiss" with Jellal just prior to the Grand Magic Games, the way her heart had hammered so forcefully against her ribcage, it kept her from breathing and the way she had felt drawn to him as though through some magnetic force. His eyes had been dark and hooded, his pupils blown wide just before his face had crumpled and he pushed himself back. He had held her firmly in place and moved himself, not her, and that was only part of how she knew he had been lying. It all told her he had been fighting the same unseen force. This was different. Different because it wasn't him. "Um," she hummed, uncertainty fluttering through her chest as he moved closer.

"Erza."

There was no mistaking that voice, and despite herself, Erza startled as though she had just been pulled from a trance, her heart completing a nervous flip in her chest. Wren immediately backed up at the deep, dark tone, but the hazel eyes of the man before them were only on her.

"Jellal," she gasped, her voice barely above a breathless whisper and yet somehow it sounded stronger than she thought it would.


A/N: I know this doesn't 100% line up with canon, and while I do apologize for that since it is what I often try to do the most, I think I'm allowed to take a little creative freedom with my own FanFiction. ;). That said, I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it. The idea was very random and sudden and helped break me out of the LONG writing slump I've been on, considering I haven't posted anything in over a year. I promise more is coming and is already written, otherwise I don't think I could be this mean and leave you with this much of a cliffhanger. Thanks for reading!

PS. I got the name Aurora from a long ago FanFiction about Gajeel and Levy's family from back when I was more active on DeviantArt. While in that, the kids are different ages, in here the twins are Aurora and Reika.

As always, I do not own Fairy Tail or any of the characters. They all belong to Hiro Mashima. I only own this story.